When creating molecular animations, one common frustration is the unintended shifting of the camera viewpoint between frames. You might spend time meticulously orienting your view—zooming, rotating, and positioning molecules just right—only to discover that later frames don’t retain your chosen perspective. This inconsistency can break the visual narrative of your animation, especially if you’re showcasing a mechanism or highlighting a specific region of a molecular complex.
This is where the Hold camera animation in SAMSON becomes a valuable tool. It provides a simple but effective solution to keep your camera static across a sequence of frames. Whether you’re focusing on a reaction site or presenting a clean, uninterrupted global structure perspective, the Hold camera animation ensures the consistency you need.
Why your view might change (when you least expect it)
In SAMSON, any interaction with your document—notably adding new elements, measuring distances, or applying animations—can potentially cause the camera to realign if no animation explicitly controls it. So, even if you didn’t “intend” to animate the camera, SAMSON might fill in the blanks with default behavior that results in drift.
To prevent this, use the Hold camera animation to fix the camera parameters between two frames. This ensures your molecular view stays locked, regardless of document changes or additional animations in parallel tracks.
How to use Hold camera
1. Navigate to the starting frame in the Animator’s Track view.
2. Adjust the 3D view until the camera is positioned exactly how you’d like it.
3. Double-click the Hold camera animation effect in the Animation panel.
4. Set the end frame of the animation to define how long the camera should hold its position.
Why this matters
In storytelling—especially scientific storytelling—visual continuity is essential. A jumping camera can distract your audience or even scramble their understanding of what they’re seeing. By deliberately locking the camera using Hold camera, you maintain control of the narrative.
This is especially useful when using animations like molecular transitions, interactions at binding sites, or time-dependent simulations. The camera won’t follow other events unless you want it to.
Tip: Combine with Move camera
If you later need to direct attention to a different part of the structure, you can introduce the Move camera animation. The Hold camera sets the stable view; Move camera provides the transitions. Think of Hold camera as a visual anchor from which you can later shift focus.
Learn more at the official documentation page: Hold camera documentation.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. Download SAMSON at https://www.samson-connect.net.